Keto Deep Dish Pepperoni Pizza #keto #pizza

There are really two steps to making this amazing pizza – mixing and baking the crust, and adding the toppings.

You’ll Need:

• 1 cup almond flour
• 2 tbsp coconut flour
• 2 tsp xantham gum
• 1 tsp baking powder, aluminum free
• 1/2 tsp italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1-1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 – 4 tbsp water, as needed
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1-1/2 cups pizza sauce, divided, low carb
• 2 ounces pepperoni slices

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease then line bottom of 8-inch metal spring-form pan with parchment paper. Or use an oven-safe skillet.

TO MAKE DOUGH:

1. Add the flours, xantham gum, baking powder, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and salt to food processor. Pulse until dry ingredients are combined.
2. Pour in apple cider vinegar, pulse until evenly distributed. Pour in egg and pulse until combined.
3. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition, until dough forms a ball. Dough will be sticky, but maintain the ball shape in your hand.
4. Wrap the ball of dough in plastic wrap and lightly knead with fingertips until smooth. If the dough will not hold together or has cracks in it (it's too dry) , return the ball to the processor and add more water 1 teaspoon at a time. Re-wrap in plastic and knead again until smooth.
5. Roll out the dough between sheets of parchment paper until roughly 10-inches round. Remove the top piece of parchment and transfer the dough to the pan by laying the dough, parchment side up over the pan.
6. Carefully remove the top layer of parchment. Gently push the dough down into the pan, smoothing the dough down into the bottom with your fingers and 1-inch up the sides of the pan. Fold any excess dough over the dough on the sides and pinch together.
7. Blind bake the dough 10 – 12 minutes on center rack of preheated oven until crust begins to turn golden brown in spots.
8. Remove crust from the oven and add toppings.
9. Sprinkle 1/3 of mozzarella over the crust in an even layer. Spread 1/2 of pizza sauce over the cheese. Add another 1/3 of the mozzarella over the sauce. Place 1/2 of the pepperoni slices over the cheese. Spread remaining sauce over the pepperoni, add remaining mozzarella cheese and then finishing with pepperoni on top.
10. Bake 20 -25 minutes on center rack of oven until cheese is melted and pepperoni is desired crisp.
11. After baking, place pan under broiler for 1 – 2 minutes if you like extra crispy cheese layer and pepperoni.

NOTES:

• For this recipe, I used an 8-inch springform pan with removable bottom.
• For this crust, I just used measuring cups and spoons to measure out the ingredients. Because the weight of measured ingredients can vary, the water you will need to form the dough might be a little more or less. After mixing up the crust ingredients, add the water a tablespoon at a time until the dough just forms a ball. You might even need more than 3 tablespoons…if so, add more water a teaspoon at a time until you get the right consistency. The dough should be sticky, but not wet.
• After kneading the dough in the plastic wrapped ball (the dough is way too sticky to knead the regular way) let it rest for about 10 minutes before rolling it out. That will give time for the xantham gum to do its job.
• Do add the spices to the dough, it makes a huge difference in the flavor!
• The best mozzarella is the cheese you shred yourself…or mozzarella specially made for pizza. The pre-shredded in the bag is fine…but it doesn’t melt and spread as well, due to stabilizers added to keep it from clumping together.
• A thick pizza sauce is the best for a deep dish pizza. Because so much sauce is used, the thin sauce may be runny when you cut the pizza. There are lots of pizza sauce brands on the market, with a wide range of carbs per serving. Just check the label before you buy.
• Layer on the toppings…but start with a layer of mozzarella to keep the crust from getting soggy while the pizza is baking.